Who is Anna Haugh? New MasterChef judge for 2026 series
Here's what you need to know!
MasterChef is returning to screens for a brand new series, with two new hosts at the helm of the cookery programme.
Announced last year, Anna Haugh and Grace Dent will return to the MasterChef kitchen but this time as judges, as a new cohort of amateur cooks battle it out to be crowned the MasterChef UK champion.
Both Haugh and Dent are no strangers to the MasterChef kitchen, but this will be their first time teaming up and presenting the series together.
Want to know more about Anna Haugh? Scroll down to learn more about the chef ahead of the series return.
Who is Anna Haugh?
Age: 45
Job: Chef and restaurateur
Instagram: @haughser
Anna Haugh is a chef, restaurateur and TV personality who began her cooking career at the Presentation Secondary School in Terenure and trained on a professional cookery course at the TU Dublin School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology.
She then began her culinary career with Derry Clarke at L'Ecrivain in Dublin, before moving to London, working with Philip Howard, Shane Osborn and Gordon Ramsay.
In 2019, she founded the Myrtle Restaurant, a restaurant in Chelsea that serves modern European food with an Irish influence.
Over the years, Haugh has appeared on several television programmes, including Saturday Kitchen, Morning Live and Snackmasters.
This won't be Haugh's first time in the MasterChef kitchen, having appeared as a guest judge before and in 2022, she replaced Monica Galetti as a judge on MasterChef: The Professionals.
What has Anna Haugh said about joining MasterChef?
When Anna Haugh was announced as the new co-host of MasterChef, she said she was "delighted" to be back on the show and judging alongside Grace Dent.
"MasterChef has long inspired and resonated with cooks in home kitchens and of course in my industry," she said in a statement. "I can't wait to get into the studio for what will be a great competition."
"I’m very proud and very excited with Grace and myself at the top of our game, so it’s a nice collaboration," she told RTÉ in a recent interview.
"It’s not the fact that it’s two women but rather that it’s people who should get the job, who do get the job."
MasterChef returns on Tuesday 21 April at 9pm.
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Authors
Katelyn Mensah is the Senior Entertainment Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.
